Monster trucks ‘like giant Tonka toys to the kids’

Saturday

Jul 26, 2014 at 10:27 PM

Gary L. Smith of the Journal Star

LACON — Austin Dahlgren of Rock Island is only 11 years old, but he’s known for most of his life what he wants to do when he grows up.

It might be a clue that parents Dan and Christie made the 90-minute drive to bring him to Saturday’s opening round of the Monster Truck Throwdown at the Marshall County Sand Trap, and the family was planning to return for Sunday’s show as well.

“It’s been in my life for so long, I want to be a driver,” the boy said as he collected autographs and even scored a prized T-shirt depicting a truck customized to look like a lobster.

“His first time at a show was in Minneapolis (where the family used to live) when he was 3, and he’s loved it ever since,” his mother said. “His bedroom is full of monster truck stuff.”

How do the folks feel about a future behind the wheel? “It’d be cool,” said Mom, and Dad added one further comment with a laugh.

“I don’t know who’d be getting in first — him or me,” he said.

Austin’s enthusiasm was not surprising to track owner Dan Smith, who stopped to chat with the family as he made the rounds of a pit party featuring the eight trucks and drivers before the 6 p.m. start of the show. It’s even part of his business plan for the facility, which he built in a former bean field early last year.

“That’s why I do the 10 and under for free (admission),” he said. “It’s the kids who drive Mom and Dad out here. These trucks are like giant Tonka toys to the kids.”

The Dahlgrens were among a family-oriented crowd that Smith estimated at more than 1,000 while fans were still coming in, and some others cited the admission policy for holding costs down for a group outing. Another family factor was mentioned by Tammy Knock of Eureka, who was part of one of many groups who lined up for tailgate parties along the track fence.

Her father, Vincent Knock of Washburn, had attended last year’s first monster truck show in Lacon and had hoped to return this year. But he died two weeks ago, so the pickup truck that had carried his casket to the cemetery was brought to the event in his memory.

“My dad raced in mud bogs,” Knock said.

Her boyfriend, Jim Brunson, said he especially enjoyed the laid-back atmosphere in a setting that still neighbors crop fields, so that people in the area could see entertainment that might otherwise require going to a bigger city.

“It’s nice to get something rural like this, rather than to have to go to Peoria or Kankakee or someplace like that,” Brunson said.

Monster Truck Throwdown is a Michigan-based operation that focuses on outdoor events around the Midwest, in contrast to shows that take place in arenas or other inside venues, said Eliot Miller, a company official.

“We have over 30 different trucks that we work with in a year, and these (eight in Lacon) are kind of the cream of the crop,” Miller said. “It’s great to work with somebody like Dan who has a motor sports background. There are a lot of things that he’s already built here, like the mud bogs, and we bring the monster trucks to that.”

Another show is scheduled for 4 p.m. Sunday after other track events earlier in the day. Smith said he anticipates an even larger crowd, partly because regular followers know that the trucks will typically do even more daring stunts than on Saturday.

“They don’t want to take a chance on hurting their truck (in the first show),” Smith explained. “But (on Sunday) they’ll destroy their trucks to prove they’re the best in the world.”

More information is available at mcsandtrap.com or by calling 363-2605.

Gary L. Smith can be reached at (800) 516-0389 or glsmith@mtco.com. Read his Northern Circuit blog at pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @Glsmithx.